Former Head of State, President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, has said he was involved in the fiercest battle in Enugu during the civil war of 1967 before the city was captured.
Explaining why the battle was tough in Enugu, Babangida, who turns 80 today, said in an interview in his Hilltop Mansion in Minna, Niger State: ”I was in Sector one of the 1st Division of the Nigerian Army in Kaduna and as such we started from Otukpo and then moved into the axis going to Enugu.
”It was our formation that eventually captured Enugu. We fought through Nsukka, Okigwe, Ninth Mile corner and other towns. That was the initial stage of the war but as the war raged, we changed from Enugu to Umuahia, Ubilagwu and Uzuakoli. I was badly hit at Uzuakoli.
”Uzuokoli was very fierce but getting into Ninth Mile in Enugu, the fiercest because of the terrain. That was very difficult because of its humid and undulating topography. Climbing and coming down from it with heavy weapons was very challenging.”
Babangida, remains a phenomenon on the continent. Although he has been out of office for nearly three decades, IBB as he is fondly called, remains a major force in the nation’s polity as the country’s political leaders often consult with him before launching out or taking far-reaching decisions. He is also a newsmaker as whatever he says makes instant headlines and stirs debates across the media space.
When the former military president sat down for a conversation, he spoke on issues that touch the heart, revealing the enormous sacrifice he made as a young Nigerian military officer fighting on the frontlines during the civil war to keep Nigeria one. IBB equally explained how he dodged bullets with God’s help to escape death in the hands of Biafran fighters during the war.
